Body clad in wetsuit found in Marin Headlands

Authorities are investigating the case of a body found Wednesday evening in rugged terrain west of Kirby Cove in the Marin Headlands, but information remained sketchy.

A hiker walked into the Sausalito firehouse shortly before 5 p.m. Wednesday to alert officials about the body.

The remains of a man clad in a wetsuit and a jacket were found "hundreds of feet" from the shore. The body apparently had been there for some time.

"An unidentified male was found off the trail between Kirby Cove and Battery Wagner," said Howard Levitt, communications chief for the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. "A recovery was mounted by Marin County search and rescue and the National Park Service, and the body was given to the Marin County coroner," he added. "We have no identification at this time."

The area in which the body was found was treated by the National Park Service as a potential crime scene as is routine, although it was unclear what might have caused the death.

Authorities in other agencies had little information about the matter or declined comment.

Marin sheriff's Lt. Keith Boyd, head of the county sheriff's coroner's unit, said early Thursday he had not yet been briefed and had no information to release.

He added that the sheriff's search-and-rescue team was involved in light of a "difficult extraction," but a team official had no comment.